No one has to pay the green premium.

Hint: The money is there, waiting. 

Our origin story

When we first founded Wasteless, our vision differed significantly from the commercial product that ultimately emerged in the market. Initially, our mission was purely environmental—our sole objective was to reduce food waste in supermarkets, plain and simple. Embracing this goal, we confronted the harsh realities head-on, developed an initial Minimum Viable Product (MVP), secured funding, and thus, our journey began with earnest determination.

The cost-conscious retailer

In the midst of our ideation and development phase, we engaged with numerous retailers—our potential clients—and it was during these interactions that a stark realization hit us: talking about sustainability is effortless, yet implementing real, sustainable actions often requires a tangible incentive. In essence, someone has to bear the cost. The feedback we received was eye-opening, if not a bit bewildering at times. We encountered sentiments like “Our waste levels are normal,” “It's just the cost of doing business,” and our personal favorite, “We need to fully stock the shelves to enhance the shopping experience.” Despite these justifications, the irony didn’t escape us that these "cost-conscious retailers" were still apprehensive about the price tag of implementing our solution.

The "Aha!" moment

As our journey progressed, a recurring theme emerged from the feedback of many retail executives: their markdown strategies were proving to be a significant financial drain. Delving deep into the issue, we uncovered that these markdowns were also ineffective in mitigating food waste. This insight led us to a profound realization: sustainability must, above all, align with sound business principles. Armed with this understanding, we returned to our mathematical drawing boards. Fortunately, we were early enough in our process to reengineer our solution from being solely focused on waste prevention to a dynamic pricing model that serves a dual purpose.

This pivot, though costly in the early stages of our venture, ultimately carved out Wasteless' unique position in the market today.

Cross-functional benefits

In its present configuration, the Wasteless solution offers more than just a financial uplift; it delivers wide-ranging, cross-functional benefits to retailers' stakeholders. This multifaceted approach not only optimizes profitability but also enhances operational efficiencies, sustainability practices, and customer satisfaction across the board.

Conclusion

Promoting a "sustainable-only" solution for retailers is not realistic, as someone ultimately has to bear the costs associated with the technology's development, implementation, and optimization over time. While it is evident that both retailers and consumers will not directly cover these expenses, there is a fortunate solution for supermarkets. The "green premium" can be funded directly from money that can be easily recouped from the high costs of markdowns and waste. This money is often "just there", waiting, idle on retailers' shelves…